Making Metal
by thejammys
Summary: [GaaLee] Gaara and Lee haven't seen each other in months and bump into each other by chance in between missions. This is one way I believe Metal could have come into being.
1. Reunion

A/N: I know I've got a million other things I'm supposed to be working on but ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯

ooooo

"Ah - Lee!"

Gaara's cry was only just barely choked out as his breath struggled to come at all. He was lying on his back, curled upward a bit from pleasure and the desire to keep his hands cupping the lovely little breasts of the man riding him.

The sheets below him, pristine in condition only an hour ago, had since been soiled with sweat and drool.

They hadn't seen each other in months. Back to back and overlapping missions pulling them in separate directions kept the lovers from each other far longer than whatever decency remained in the universe should have allowed.

It was pure coincidence, or perhaps restitution on the part of this unfair verse, that they found themselves at the same tea house at the same time. Lee and Tenten were only seconds away from sprinting off in another direction when Gaara and his siblings came into view.

At first, the lovers had frozen in their tracks, unable to believe what their eyes were seeing. Then, without a word to their companions, they flew to each other and became a tangled mess of limbs, desperate kisses, and tears.

They were expecting to spend another six weeks apart.

Staying longer would put a gross dent in the schedule Tenten and Lee were trying to keep to, but it was out of the question that they would depart before some time for intimacies was granted.

Lee hadn't asked for permission, either way.

He and Gaara had sprinted, with their fingers laced tightly together, to the nearest motel.

Lee's jumpsuit was in tatters before the door shut.

He'd pressed the Kazekage's back to the door, pushed his head under Gaara's robes, and sucked him off right there from the floor.

But they couldn't afford a refractory period; it wasn't in their sexual allowance with the clock ticking so cruelly. So Gaara had pushed Lee's head away just as he was about to lose it, and with all the time they had spent apart it was mere minutes later, and pulled his lover to stand up.

The sand shredded the last of Lee's clothing as Gaara walked him backward and pushed him on the bed, stripping off his own clothes as he moved.

The gourd had fallen to the floor with an unceremonious 'dunk!' when Gaara gracelessly released the strap and let it fly. It was a mark of how badly he'd missed Lee, as he'd never shown such carelessness with his shield before.

He was panting when he climbed over Lee and pressed his lover's body into the mattress with his own.

Their furious attempts to kiss every inch of each other's skin as they were simultaneously receiving those kisses left them in strange contortions and breathless; moaning without their usual regard for privacy and decorum.

Gaara tore his neck from Lee's lips and hastily moved his own down the length of Lee's torso, making a straight, hurried line for the thing his tongue had been craving for some time.

He settled himself lower on the bed as he pushed Lee's knees up and apart and buried his face into that warm, lovely spot between two well-toned thighs.

Almost immediately, Gaara's meal rose to meet him as Lee arched his back and then pressed himself harder against his lover's thoughtful tongue.

Here, they could afford a release. Lee wouldn't need time to come back from it, and Gaara was too starved to stop.

By the time Kankuro, who had been abandoned with his sister and the Konoha-nin back at the tea shop, looked down at his watch and saw that only ten minutes had passed since the lovers had fled, Lee was crying out and trembling as a loving mouth and careful finger took him over the edge.

When Gaara lifted his head, he only had a second to revel in the beautiful sight of his panting, flushed lover lying spent on the bed, before he was being pushed onto his back. Thighs he was so used to seeing wrapped in green spandex, now bare save for old scars and the indent on the skin that Lee's ninja pouch left, bracketed Gaara's hips and a bandaged hand gripped his cock, pulled back the foreskin, and guided it to something warm and wet.

The moment the head of his penis felt that familiar tickle of maddening heat, Gaara's hands gripped Lee's hips, ready to tug. Once Lee had him in the right position, he sank down.

Their groans harmonized, and relief came off of them in waves, like steam over a pot of boiling water.

Lee took a second, just one, to be grateful for the moment. With his husband underneath him and a gorgeous, thick cock inside him - he felt very lucky.

Then he started to ride.

Gaara's breath was knocked out of him almost immediately. He couldn't recall sex ever feeling this good before. It seemed like more than just the reprieve from their horrible frustration. Lee felt... wetter, warmer - _tighter_. It was a new sensation with their most intimate skin rubbing so close and stimulating nerve endings Gaara wasn't sure had ever been savored before.

He felt Lee come again after a few minutes of his enthusiastic movement, but the rhythm barely faltered.

Lee could come as many times as he pleased. This was the result of the beautiful marriage of his body and his own determination.

Gaara smiled weakly up at him as he felt the uncontrollable pulsing around his cock and watched Lee's head tilt back as his high-pitched voice let out a soprano's breathy whine.

Realistically, they couldn't take more than half an hour. Not that Gaara was trying to delay his orgasm. Frankly, he was astounded to the point of proud that he hadn't released when Lee's other inner gates were clenching so tightly with orgasmic strength. But now his body begged him to rock his own hips back up into his husband.

They moved together, fingertips leaving red impressions where they were gripping hips and shoulders, and when Gaara knew he was seconds away from bliss, he forced his eyes open and looked for Lee's.

Pale blue met onyx and they watched each other come, fighting with everything inside themselves not to retreat to the cozy peaceful world behind their lids so they could share this moment.

When they'd ridden out the last of it, and each let out a final sigh, Lee unseated himself from his throne, paying no mind to the mess that followed, and lied down on Gaara's chest.

He didn't press their lips together right away, but gently brushed some of Gaara's hair behind his ear instead.

"I love you," he whispered.

Gaara lifted his hand to return the gesture, but kept his fingers lost in silky black locks, before breathing back, "I love _you_ , Lee," and then pulled his lover's head down.

They were too out of breath to make proper use of their tongues, but between gasps for air their lips massaged each other.

It broke their hearts to rise and dress. Lee had to pull a new set of tights out of his pack, since his eager husband had made cleaning rags of the one he'd worn into the room, and Gaara watched him put it on with a heavy heart.

He hated being away from Lee, and another six weeks sounded unbearable - but this afternoon had helped.

They went back to the tea shop with their fingers laced just as tightly as they'd been on their departure.

Gaara was certain Lee had bruised one of his ribs when they hugged each other goodbye, but he didn't mind. He'd think of it as a parting gift, and be reminded of Lee's love for him every time he took a deep breath.

Their goodbye kiss left them both with stinging eyes, each trying so hard to be strong for the other.

Temari and Kankuro each clasped a comforting hand on their little brother's shoulders after the green of Lee's jumpsuit disappeared from view, and Kankuro offered sage wisdom.

"At least you had sex, right?"

Gaara continued to stare at the spot where he'd seen viridian tights disappear into foliage long after they were gone.

When his siblings finished their lunch, they wrapped up the food Gaara had left untouched on his plate, and wordlessly guided him out of the shop.

It wasn't until that evening, when the three siblings tucked themselves into bed and Gaara wrapped his arms around himself to mimic the affection he preferred to receive from his lover at bedtime, that he realized what it was that had made their sex feel so amazing.

They hadn't used a condom.

There was no way to get a message to Lee, Gaara didn't even know where he was, so he could only hope that Lee would also realize what they had done and take whatever action was needed.

But that night Gaara dreamed of a little boy with dark hair and his eyes, and in the morning, he hoped Lee had seen the same thing.

Six weeks later, when they were finally reunited, Lee was glowing.

ooooo

A/N: Thank you for reading! ^^

tumblr: rockleepotato


	2. A Shift In Training

A/N: This wasn't supposed to have chapters but the feedback I got really surprised me and so here is this. Thanks y'all.

oooooo

"Okay, Gaara, come at me with everything you've got!" Lee declared as he struck a pose his muscles knew to make before his mind could order them to do so.

Gaara didn't move. He stared at his husband, blinked twice, and then frowned when he realized Lee wasn't joking.

He'd been neglecting Lee this week – unintentionally, of course. A collective mass of problems in Suna's inner workings that ultimately fell under his umbrella of responsibility decided to pile up all at once, and struck like angry cobras for the last five days.

The paperwork was endless, and Lee suffered for it. Gaara hardly came home to sleep, much less to make love or snuggle. The boys hadn't even found the time to take lunch together. So when Lee bounded into his office today, with his handsome face all flushed and full of excitement, and he leaned down and kissed Gaara's neck and pushed his husband's paperwork out of his hands murmuring that he'd like Gaara to take a break and come train with him, Gaara felt he owed it to his lover to take a moment for them to be intimate.

Also, Lee's neck kisses had given him a boner.

Lee had taken his hand and pulled him from the room with the biggest grin on his face, one that he usually wore when he was excited for something, and Gaara _thought_ that that thing was sex.

But oh, his boner had lulled him into a false sense of comfort and made him forget that Lee didn't use double entendre when it came to his beloved training.

No, he genuinely wanted Gaara to fight him.

As much as Gaara hated to disappoint his lover, Lee wasn't going to get what he wanted today.

"No, Lee," Gaara said, straight and to the point.

The beautiful beast of Konoha didn't like that.

"Gaara!" he yelled back.

This was an old argument.

Even before they became lovers, Gaara wasn't terribly keen on the idea of sparring with Lee. No matter how much that green fool enjoyed jumping around and trying to improve his speed using the power of the sand, it made Gaara uncomfortable.

And that hurt Lee's pride.

He didn't beg, he didn't cry, and he didn't pout – he curled his fists and told Gaara that his reticence to train with the best of his strength and the full capacity of his abilities showed a lack of respect for Lee as a shinobi and a friend, and that Gaara owed him better than that.

It made Gaara nervous, but Lee was right. So he had uncorked the gourd and gave Lee a workout while his own body remained clenched.

It took reminding, from time to time, and that reminding usually didn't involve Lee's impassioned speeches about 'honor' and 'integrity', but he'd skip right to shrieking 'Gaara!' like a ninja howler monkey.

It normally did the trick.

But Gaara wasn't going to honor Lee's wishes today.

 _No chance in hell_.

"Gaara!" Lee tried again after another moment of silence. He didn't drop his fighting stance, but the excitement had faded from his face and now he was beginning to look angry.

 _Too bad._

"I'm not going to spar with you, Lee," Gaara said.

That got Lee to drop the pose. "Why not!" he yelled back petulantly as his hands curled into fists.

Perhaps Gaara should have expected this question, since this was Lee, but today – now, of all times – it just seemed so _unnecessary_.

So he didn't answer, he just tilted his chin down a bit to show Lee that his eyes were looking down his lover's body, and Gaara settled his stare on the small round bump sitting on top of Lee's belly.

This gesture wasn't a good enough answer for Lee.

"Please don't ignore me!"

Gaara looked up again at the face he adored so much; a face that was probably seconds away from splitting into tears or a high-pitched yell.

"Lee, you're pregnant."

The words hung in the air for a sustained beat while the husbands stared at each other before Lee scrunched his fists again.

"I do not see why that should be used against me!"

What did Gai _do_ to this boy to make him think training is like oxygen and can't even hear how ridiculous he sounds –

"I am still a shinobi – I can still fight!" Lee pressed on, taking a step toward Gaara and raising up one of his arms again.

"Yes, but –"

"It is important not to neglect basic training!"

"Lee-"

"Complacency allows our bodies to fall into disrepair, and then we must work even harder to make up for muscle loss!"

"Sweetheart-"

"I will not let my body become useless during this time!"

Gaara didn't have time to reply to that before Lee dropped his head into the crook of his elbow and started to cry.

 _Oh, Lee…_

Lee's furious dedication to training was something Gaara, and really _the rest of the world_ , was well aware of. It stemmed from a cocktail of years of his sensei's influence, his own personality, and the memory of what it had been like when he'd been lying in a hospital bed with his left leg and arm destroyed while doctors told him to "be patient".

He was habitually afraid of finding himself once again in a position where he wasn't able to physically perform on the same level as his fellow shinobi. It was as though Tsunade's voice was forever ghosting at Lee's ear telling him that he ought to give up being a ninja, and he worked himself to the bone everyday to shoo that memory away.

But traumatic past injury or no, their baby deserved to grow in a womb that wasn't flying around dodging weapons and deadly sand.

At least, that's what Gaara thought.

"Your body isn't useless, Lee. It's working very hard right now – harder than it's ever worked before," Gaara murmured as he walked forward and pulled Lee into his arms. Lee relaxed his arm but he didn't return Gaara's embrace. He just dropped his forehead onto his lover's shoulder as his tears continued.

"No one will spar with me," he sniffed.

Gaara reached his arms tighter around Lee's back and pulled him closer so the swell of their unborn child was pressed against his own stomach. Maybe it would feel comforted coming in contact with one of its dads that wasn't crazy about exercise.

"Good."

He heard Lee's scowl at the same moment his lover picked his head up and pushed himself out of Gaara's hold. "Gaara! How can you say that? You know how important training is to me!"

"I do know, Lee, but the safety of our baby is more important. I'm sure even your sensei would agree with that," Gaara countered.

Lee's lips turned down in a furious pout that made him look vaguely like a turtle. Gaara had never been able to take Lee's frowning face seriously, and it was even worse now that Lee's cheeks were getting softer from the baby.

"I can train without harming the baby!" Lee protested.

"Tsunade specifically said you shouldn't be sparring."

Lee opened his mouth to argue, and then closed it immediately when his lower lip began to tremble. Gaara stepped forward and put his hand on the back of Lee's head to guide it back to his shoulder right as the tears started to fall again.

"You don't stop being a ninja just because you're pregnant," Gaara murmured.

"I know," Lee chuffed back.

Gaara didn't press beyond that, he'd wait for Lee to explain himself on his own.

After taking a deep, shuddering breath, and wiping his nose on Gaara's shoulder (because apparently fishing out a tissue was not an option), Lee lifted his head so he could look at Gaara and quietly said, "The pregnancy has been making me feel limp."

Lee didn't like the word 'dysphoric'. He felt like identifying his feelings that way drew too much attention to his anatomy and ultimately dismissed his emotions. If he was feeling like less of a man than Gaara, he didn't want to throw a spotlight on the big difference between their bodies with a word that made him think of nothing else but what he didn't have between his legs.

So they used 'limp', because that's also how Gaara could describe himself if he was suffering from a stab to his masculinity.

Normally when Lee said he was feeling this way, Gaara would attempt to help Lee feel more like his usual self by distracting him with training. He'd nudge Lee into a push up position and then sit on his back while he counted his lover's exercises for him.

Feeling strong helped Lee, particularly if they made it into a contest – which Gaara never won. It worked almost every time. The rush of endorphins got Lee excited enough that he'd just throw himself into more training and get lost in his happy place.

But the pregnancy took away that option for Lee, and by extension - his confidence as a shinobi.

"There is one other kind of training you can do," Gaara said, and when Lee raised a questioning eyebrow, Gaara kissed his cheek and whispered, "Let's go home."

Lee wiped his eyes and sniffed again, considering Gaara to see if his statement was being ignored or if his husband was simply waiting to discuss it until they were in a more private space. "Don't you have a meeting later?"

Gaara nodded. "Yes, but we have some time," he answered, reaching out and taking Lee's hand.

He'd help him in the other way he knew how.

oooooo

The makeup of their anatomy made a particular kind of sexual activity easy and enjoyable and that activity _happened_ to involve Gaara penetrating Lee.

It didn't make Lee less of a man, and it didn't mean that Gaara was topping by default.

Sometimes Lee would climb onto his husband's lap, hold Gaara's wrists above his head, and ride him hard until Gaara was winded even lying down. No part of Lee's body would enter Gaara's, but Gaara was definitely bottoming.

It just happened that vaginal intercourse was practical for time's sake. Lee got wet easily and without a lot of foreplay, and while they did love to take their time teasing each other, if they were exhausted then it was the fastest way for them to get off at the same time. Oral and digital stimulation normally required turns for them, and grinding just wasn't as satisfying comparatively.

But Lee also liked to penetrate Gaara.

They had a toy to assist in their lovemaking, depending on the position they preferred for the evening, but it was really supplementary to the natural ways of pleasuring each other they were born with.

Lee didn't need rubber and a harness to be inside Gaara, he had fingers and a tongue and long skinny toes that had once brought the Kazekage to orgasm after what started out as a joking tease turned into a very real footjob.

Whether it was his favorite sexual activity or not, Gaara was willing to do what it took to help Lee feel more comfortable with his own body during their intimacies, but it worked out nicely that Gaara happened to very much enjoy being fingered.

He felt safe when he lied on his back and spread his legs for Lee. It allowed him to close his eyes and turn the reins of responsibility over to someone else; someone he trusted and loved. In the comfort of their bed, with scarred fingers gently working him open, he wasn't the Kazekage, he didn't have to make decisions, or worry about being gentle with Lee – he could just close his eyes and enjoy.

"I want you inside me," Gaara said bluntly, as though he were selecting a salad dressing.

They'd already undressed and moved under the covers, so Lee just grinned and removed his lips from where they'd been painting a pretty red mark onto the pale skin of Gaara's neck so he could reach into their bedside table for their cherry-scented marital aid.

Lee put his lips back once his fingers were slicked and in position to fuck his husband.

One at a time, nice and slowly, easing into it with all the consideration in him, Lee worked himself in and out of Gaara's tiny hole.

"I'm inside you," Lee whispered against the shell of his ear, letting the final consonant 'ooh' shape of his lips turn into a gentle kiss.

"You feel so good," Gaara whispered back, turning his head so he could hide his face against Lee's while those slim fingers continued to work him.

He knew Lee was watching his face, paying attention to the way he grimaced and moaned. Lee was an exceptionally considerate lover, and Gaara knew that a large part of his husband's observations were a continued effort to read Gaara's expressions for feedback on what felt the most pleasurable. But a smaller part, a selfish part, watched Gaara's face while he pressed as deep as he could possibly go inside his lover, and felt like a man.

Gaara knew this. He was glad for it. He liked to play a role in making Lee feel like his best, most complete self – it made him feel needed.

Although his eyes remained closed throughout Lee's ministrations, Gaara knew his husband was feeling better from the grin he could feel against his ear.

He reached down to grip himself, when Lee's fingers had him right at the cusp of delirium, and Gaara groaned out what Lee usually babbled to him: "don't stop don't stop don't stop oh god please don't stop."

Lee loved hearing that.

He also loved when Gaara slumped helplessly against his chest after coming, and could do no more than pant and blink stupidly.

So Gaara did precisely that, not that he really had control in the matter.

The moment he was able to order his limbs to move, Gaara reached between Lee's legs and pressed the pad of his middle finger directly to Lee's clit.

He made no comment on the incredible wetness he felt, and he didn't move down to put the fingers of his other hand inside his lover – not wanting to risk undoing anything that had made Lee feel less limp. Gaara just massaged in the way he knew Lee liked: small fast circles.

Lee didn't last two minutes.

After Lee stopped twitching and Gaara removed his hand, the boys kissed each other softly and said 'I love you' with their eyes.

They kept wet wipes next to their lube, and Lee used one to clean his hand before wrapping himself around Gaara.

It was so warm in Lee's arms… this was his safe place. Their baby didn't even know how lucky it was to get to grow inside the strongest, warmest, most loving body Gaara knew of.

He wished Lee would see it that way, too.

"Male seahorses are the ones that carry the babies."

Gaara felt Lee's head shift as he let out a soft "hm?"

"Seahorses," Gaara answered, turning himself so that he could stay in Lee's embrace and also look him in the eyes. "It's the males that get pregnant and give birth."

Lee blinked at him. "Really?"

Gaara nodded and slipped his arms around Lee's waist now that he was in a position to do so.

"So I'm like a seahorse?" Lee asked as his face lit up.

"Fitting, since you were born in the year of the dragon," Gaara replied.

He felt Lee's arms tighten their hold and then a soft kiss on his forehead. "How perfect!"

"And this summer you'll give birth to our tiger," Gaara continued, tucking himself closer to the bump, where the tiger was sleeping.

"Our little tiger…" Lee echoed, nuzzling his face into Gaara's hair.

Two hours later, when Gaara hadn't shown up for his meeting, Kankuro let himself into his brother's home, yelling for him.

When that didn't get an answer he stomped up the stairs and threw the bedroom door open, even though he was fairly confident that the Kazekage wouldn't be home at three o'clock in the afternoon.

But Kankuro was wrong. In that tiny bed, sleeping peacefully, lay Gaara, Lee, and presumably, the tiger.

He stared at them from the doorway for a solid ten seconds before turning around, shutting the door as quietly as he could, and moving back down to the living room silently.

Tonight, or whenever Gaara woke up, they could go over the things they were meant to discuss earlier. But for now, Kankuro would be a good brother, and brother-in-law, and cut this couple some slack, and follow in their footsteps with a nap.

Upstairs, Gaara smiled against Lee's neck.

oooooo

A/N: Thank you for reading!


	3. The Tiger's Debut

A/N: I wrote the first part of this back when I wrote 'Gaara and Love', but it didn't quite fit with that story. I was going to put it on tumblr as a ficlet of sorts, and then this story happened… anyway. I livestreamed this chapter, part of it anyway, and it was so much fun and thank you to everyone who came out to watch! Y'all are amazing!

oooooo

' _You don't deserve to love someone that much.'_

It was the first thought Gaara had once he realized what he felt for Lee.

There was a momentary flash of euphoric joy, and then the demons that lingered even after Shukaku's expulsion start talking.

' _You're a murderer. You're a monster. Lee will come to his senses. You'll snap and hurt him again. He's so good and you're_ **not**. _'_

He never shared these thoughts, and they never really went away, but the horrible little voice was usually smothered by Lee's kisses, and Lee's hugs, and the bright smile Gaara pretended was just for him.

And he did love someone that much.

Then everyone started having babies.

Gaara felt joy for his sister, and an unexpected protectiveness and pride when he held his nephew for the first time.

But it was nothing compared to what Temari described.

"Kid's not even ten minutes old and he's already taken over my entire life."

He and Kankuro had raised their eyebrows, at least Gaara mimicked the expression, and looked at their brother-in-law who smirked and nodded.

"She's right…how troublesome."

Gaara was happy for her, and for his friends. Their children became these absolutely beloved and frightfully adored creatures. Gaara suspected it was similar to the intensity he felt for Lee, and then Naruto corrected him.

"No, man… I love Hinata, but this? This is _scary_ \- one minute I was just this guy and the next he was born and I've never loved anything that much."

It sounded horrifying. Nothing should have that much power.

But Gaara moved on from this inexplicable phenomenon of unconditional parental love, reasoning that he would never have to deal with it.

Then Lee came home one day, beaming.

There were a lot of tears, kisses, and Gaara may have gone into shock at one point, and when the dust from the news settled, a horrible thought remained:

' _You don't deserve to love someone that much.'_

And Gaara was terrified that he wouldn't.

Lee was an anomaly - so was Naruto, for that matter. Gaara didn't give or feel love as freely as other people did. Even with Lee - his sweet Lee! The kindest, sweetest, most wonderful, most handsome - it took Gaara _years_ to realize he was in love.

But these babies? They took their first gulp of air and magically had their parents wrapped around their fingers. And that inhale was always followed by screaming! A blind, wrinkled, screaming thing that pooped constantly - how was Gaara supposed to love that more than Lee?

His child wasn't even born yet, and Gaara already felt like a horrible parent.

His own father couldn't have felt that instant affection towards him, and what if heartlessness was genetic? Gaara already felt predisposed to it.

In the beginning of Lee's pregnancy, nightmares - memories, really - of all the people Gaara had hurt or killed in his childhood, had him jerking awake, covered in a cold sweat. He couldn't even curl into his husband for comfort, because sometimes he dreamt of Lee.

So he lied awake, listening to that horrible voice.

' _You won't love your baby enough.'_

' _Lee will find out and leave you.'_

' _The baby will find out and hate you.'_

Gaara was terrified.

But he didn't communicate these worries to Lee. He didn't want Lee to remember that he was a monster.

And then one day, when the boys were sitting down enjoying a sleepy breakfast, Lee got up to grab more fruit and tripped on the corner of the table.

This was a fairly common occurrence, and although Gaara didn't like to see Lee get hurt, this sort of harmless instance barely registered with him anymore. Lee refused to wear protective bubble wrap, so over the years Gaara had just learned to accept a certain amount of injury in his husband.

But this morning, a small part of Gaara forgot the arrangement and acted of its own accord.

It wasn't even the blink of an eye – it seemed so much faster than that – but before Lee's green clad ass could stumble to the ground, sand appeared in front of his stomach and steadied him.

Lee's eyes grew wide as he blinked down at where it still lingered, almost caressing his still flat abdomen. He turned at looked at his husband, expecting an explanation, but Gaara could only blink at him.

He was tired.

"Gaara," Lee tried, still staring at him as the sand continued to hover.

He meant to say, 'yes, my dearest love?' but instead just grunted something back and then coughed.

"There is sand is on my stomach!"

Gaara dropped his eyes to where sand was – in fact – on Lee's stomach and blinked at that as well.

Hmm.

How about that.

He looked up at Lee again, unsure of why Lee was still staring at him.

 _It's sand, Lee._

And then a burst of cold, morning understanding collected and slapped him in the face.

 _Oh, that's MY sand!_

Gaara frowned and looked down at his hands, like he'd commanded the sand to move to protect Lee and simply forgot about it in the last ten seconds.

But that's not what happened.

The sand had only ever acted outside of Gaara's control when it was protecting him – it had _never_ tried to extend that same courtesy to Lee.

And frankly, if that's who it felt like guarding now then _good luck, sand_.

It wasn't until hours later, when Lee was practicing his jumps (despite Gaara's very pointed 'Could you _not_ ') and stumbled that Gaara realized what happened.

Just like the breakfast save, sand appeared out of nowhere and caught Lee from tumbling forward a mere moment after it became clear that's exactly what he was going to do - but it cradled him in the same place: low on his stomach, even though steadying Lee's legs would have probably righted him faster.

This time Lee didn't stop to stare at Gaara and wonder over why he'd been saved, he was too into the jumps. He simply chirped out a polite 'thank you, Gaara!' and then went right back to counting as he hopped off.

Gaara, on the other hand, had dropped the scroll he was reading when he realized what was going on.

 _The sand was protecting the baby_.

It was one hundred percent acting of its own accord – and _it was protecting his child_.

Gaara had to sit down.

He had gotten so lost in the worry over passing on his father's feelings towards him that he'd completely forgotten about the alternative.

His _mother_.

The charge of unconditional, unflinchingly protective love that had always guarded him knew that a small part of him was now growing inside Lee and extended its reach there.

It was love in its purest form. This baby wasn't even a person yet – it was barely even the size of a raspberry – and because it shared his blood, his mother's spirit gave it her love and protection.

It made his head spin.

At least, that was the initial diagnoses: his mother's love was so powerful that it wanted to protect every last bit of him, no matter where it was.

But it only took a moment after his realization before the guilt came swarming back.

His mother's love for him was so powerful, so much like what Temari and Naruto had described – and now, in addition to potentially disappointing his husband and baby, Gaara worried that he was going to let down his mother's spirit.

it was too much.

A few weeks later, after Gaara jerked awake from another nightmare where his baby inexplicably spoke perfectly and managed to articulate to him how disappointed it was in Gaara as a parent, he rolled over to spoon his husband and frowned when his arm fell through empty space straight onto the bed.

 _There should be a Lee here._

His husband was probably just using the restroom, but Gaara needed comfort _now_ , so he got up to search for his lover.

The search wasn't long; the sound of rummaging in their fridge led Gaara right to the kitchen.

"Lee?" he called to a familiar bottom sticking out from the other side of the open fridge door.

Lee popped right up with a tiny 'hm?' around spoon in his mouth.

It fell to the ground when Lee's eyes widened and he exclaimed, "Oh goodness, Gaara – did I wake you?!"

 _Well no, but that shriek probably got our neighbors_.

Gaara shook his head and walked over so he could pull Lee into an embrace.

Lee hugged him back without question or pause.

As Gaara tucked his face into Lee's neck and reveled in the lovely warmth that always clung to Lee's body (save for his icy feet), he felt Lee press a kiss to his head.

"Mm, you smell good," Lee remarked happily as his muscly arms gripped Gaara even tighter.

 _If you say so, Lee_.

They stayed like that for a moment, just holding each other (and sniffing, in Lee's case), before Lee planted another kiss and asked, "Is everything alright?"

Gaara nodded and held him tighter.

They finally let go of each other when the chill of the still-open fridge made their nipples hard.

Lee rinsed off his spoon, pulled out the container of yogurt he'd been sampling when Gaara walked in, and then pulled his husband onto their couch.

"I know it's not wise to have dairy so late at night, but I had this lovely dream that I was eating ice cream and woke up with such a craving!" Lee explained unnecessarily. Gaara hadn't batted an eye at the snack.

But he listened and nodded as he pushed Lee's shoulder to make him recline more so Gaara could curl up against Lee's side and hold him tight.

"Wake me up next time," Gaara said. "I'll get it for you."

He felt Lee shake his head.

"Gaara you have a very important job! A full eight hours of rest is necessary for your brain and body to run at their highest potential – and I needed to use the restroom anyway," Lee replied.

"I'll do that for you, too," Gaara murmured as he tucked his face into Lee's chest as though he were trying to scratch his nose.

Lee kissed his head again. "I'm not sure how that would work," he answered thoughtfully around a spoonful of his snack.

It wouldn't, but Gaara didn't like waking up and not having Lee there. If he had to learn a jutsu that allowed him to perform Lee's bodily functions for him in order to eliminate the unpleasant shock of turning to cuddle someone and finding empty bed – then Gaara was feeling up to the task at this moment.

Normally it was truly incredible how pacifying it was just to be near Lee like this, but tonight the tense ball the dream had put in Gaara's stomach remained.

He was trying to calm down, to take refuge in Lee's loveliness, but now that he was holding Lee it seemed like seeking him out when Gaara was still this clenched was a poor idea.

Lee was going to notice something was off and that this wasn't just a harmless desire for cuddles. He was going to demand that Gaara tell him what was wrong, and he was going to discover what a terrible parent he was, and the baby was going to receive a telepathic signal from Lee (because Gaara wasn't convinced that they weren't able to do that) that its father was horrible –

"Oh, drat," Lee interrupted.

Gaara lifted his head to see what prompted that tiny exclamation and immediately found himself smiling in spite of the clawing crappiness sticking to him.

Lee had dropped some of his yogurt on his chest.

It landed in one nice, tiny blob that Lee was able to easily scoop up with his finger. Right before he licked it clean with his own tongue, he pointed it forward and offered the snack to Gaara – with an expression of perfect innocence.

Gaara flicked his eyes between the finger and Lee's face once, and then closed his eyes and opened his mouth to accept the offering.

He hadn't tried for sexual, although closing his eyes probably didn't help, but when he opened them Lee's lips were parted and Gaara could already see his cheeks turning pink.

Oh dear.

Normally, aroused Lee was one of Gaara's favorite things – but now, after the dream he'd just had, with his self-esteem this low, he wasn't in an especially _deserving_ mood.

"Did it taste good?" Lee asked, a bit shakily.

Gaara nodded once and then looked down at his boyfriend's wet finger, perfectly aware that Lee's eyes were following this movement.

"Do you…want to taste more?" Lee continued, holding the carton a few centimeters higher and raising his eyebrows hopefully.

A small part of his brain told him to say 'no thank you, love' and pull Lee back into a cuddle… but blood was rapidly leaving that part.

 _If it's what Lee wants, then it's not so selfish._

So instead Gaara answered the way he knew Lee wanted him to: by reaching out and taking the spoon, dipping it into the container, and retrieving a thin film of it that he could gently pass along Lee's bottom lip.

"Yes," he answered quietly as he leaned in to get another taste.

Truthfully, he had no idea what the yogurt tasted like – but he could taste Lee. He could taste his husband's tongue, and feel his shaky breath.

But he'd only been offered a taste, so Gaara pulled back after his tongue had removed the traces of white from Lee's lips.

The image brought to mind a similar look he enjoyed on Lee… but now was not the time for that. He could satisfy Lee without getting off himself, and that would keep the guilt at bay for now.

Gaara grabbed the spoon again and dipped it shallowly once more, but this time, instead of gliding the back of the instrument along Lee's mouth, he dropped it down to his husband's neck.

He let Lee sit there for a second, to feel the chill from the spoon and the dessert, and to _wait_ for what he knew was coming, and then Gaara leaned in and licked again.

Lee let out a tiny noise and tilted his head back a bit, to give Gaara more room. He shifted slightly and Gaara felt one of his arms reach around his back to encourage his ministrations.

Gaara's tongue lapped at the soft skin there only a few times, until the dairy was gone, before he pulled back, in spite of the way Lee's arm tightened a bit to keep him there.

His ridiculous turtle mouth pout broke into a happy smile when Gaara started tugging on the hem of his shirt and Lee realized the licks weren't finished.

No, with each second that passed Lee looked more and more delicious to Gaara's hungry eyes… lying on the couch, so excited and expectant with the night air chilling his perky little nipples so they rose up to greet Gaara's tongue…

In a moment, he would call on the use of the yogurt again, but first, Gaara shifted himself so he was straddling Lee's hips. It gave him easier access to the handsome chest and stomach he'd just been offered.

Gaara leaned in to tickle the opposite side of Lee's neck from where he'd just licked, and trailed the fingertips of his right hand up along Lee's side until the reached the underside of a tiny breast.

One thing Lee was grateful for in this body he didn't feel like he belonged in, was that his breasts never grew out of the smallest cup size available. He got away with wearing the same sports bras that Tenten turned him onto – and when he wasn't training, if it wasn't cold outside, he could get away without wearing one at all.

The little bumps they put on his chest were subtle enough that when Lee looked in the mirror to admire his green tights, he just saw them as budding muscles – and that made him feel masculine.

It was really only in the last week or so that Gaara noticed they were starting to swell, and although Gaara never understood why breasts could make men so blindly stupid – he was absolutely mesmerized by his husband's chest.

If anything though, Gaara identified as 'Lee-sexual' so it made sense to him that no matter what his husband's body looked like, Gaara was going to be sexually attracted to it.

He moved his finger all over the tiny mound, circling lightly so it would still come off like a tickle, and felt a satisfied warmth bloom in his chest when he heard Lee's breath hitch.

The circles grew smaller and tighter until he was running them around a firm nipple, and Lee was trying to push himself into the touch.

Now it was time for their milk friend to come back.

Ignoring the turtle-pout again, Gaara sat up and took his hand off Lee so he could retrieve the yogurt and spoon.

He pulled out the same small amount and pressed the bottom of the cold utensil to the same nipple he'd just teased, and waited until Lee's eyebrows twitched in anticipation before turning the spoon over and spreading the yogurt on him.

Gaara maintained eye contact as he leaned forward and flicked his tongue once across the mess he'd made.

"Ah-"

That was a lovely, soft noise. That deserved another lick.

"Mm-"

The licking didn't stop. Gaara closed his lips over the nipple and sucked softly, unsure if the changes to Lee's breasts included increased sensitivity. But the hand that tucked itself in Gaara's hair and gripped tightly told him ' _harder'_.

Since this was all about Lee's pleasure, Gaara complied.

When he took his lips off, to get more yogurt, he saw Lee's eyes were closed and his lips were parted.

Gaara was trying to ignore his own arousal in pursuit of focusing solely on his lover… but this image made him twitch in his pants.

 _Focus_.

He took the spoon and gave Lee's other breast the same treatment, moving much faster this time, and then tucked himself in to lick and suck just as eagerly on this neglected little mound.

He licked and kissed until it became mindless. A few times he heard Lee hiss and realized he was sucking hard enough to leave bruises (something Lee actually enjoyed). The longer his mouth worked, the more Lee's hips shifted underneath him and gyrated helplessly searching for friction.

Gaara's tongue was needed elsewhere.

Without taking his lips away this time, Gaara blindly felt for the container and used his finger to scoop out a bit so he could wipe it down Lee's chest, before licking it right up.

Then down his stomach, then a generous dollop in his belly button – which Gaara knew tickled more than excited Lee, and then Gaara made a line of it right at the hem of Lee's sleep shorts.

For this lick, he trailed his tongue slowly across, and looked up at Lee while he did it.

He'd already shifted himself off of Lee's lap as he'd moved down, and now he unseated himself completely so he could hook his fingers under the elastic band and slip the shorts off.

They fell to the floor unceremoniously as Gaara situated himself once more.

Lee put his left leg up on the back of the couch and rested his right foot on the floor, to keep himself open and make space for Gaara.

The spread of his legs moved its influence to his pussy, coaxing the outer lips of that open as well.

Gaara didn't put the yogurt here. He was wary of putting anything inside Lee that might not sit well with his body or cause an infection.

And it so happened that Lee had already made a lovely treat for Gaara to lick away.

Gaara turned his head to the side and kissed the inside of the knee that was resting on top of the couch, and then slowly, with a trail of kisses, moved his lips down to where Lee wanted them.

He moved his lips over one of the labia, and then tilted his head to the side and moved his lips around it.

Lee told him it felt strange, and not exactly pleasurable, but there was something arousing about the idea that Gaara needed _all_ of Lee in his mouth – so Gaara made a point to feast on every little bit of Lee he was offered.

He rolled the flesh once with his tongue, and then moved other to give the other side the same attention.

Love on every – little – bit.

Above him, he heard Lee make a soft, fond noise, and Gaara looked up at him when he moved his tongue to glide along the smaller inner lips.

He pressed his tongue gently, like he had earlier with his finger, and licked up, lightly passed over Lee's clit, and then down the other side.

Lee shifted his hips up, effectively smooshing himself on Gaara's face and disturbing the gentleness Gaara had been treating him to.

But it just made them both smile.

Gaara took his husband's wish to heart and pressed his tongue as deep inside of his lover as he could, and then wiggled it, before moving out and licking a stripe up to the swollen nub that drove Lee crazy.

He repeated this move a few times, each time lingering longer on Lee's clit before diving down again, until he stopped taking his tongue away and moved his lips over that needy clitoris and let his tongue go to town.

Just like his breasts, Lee's vagina had changed a little bit with the pregnancy.

It hadn't become swollen, at least to Gaara's eyes, although a few days ago at when Lee was grinding against his stomach he'd marveled at how he felt more sensitive there. But the taste had shifted a bit.

Gaara couldn't completely explain it…it was more, tart? In any case, it wasn't unpleasant. Gaara's tongue, much like his sexuality, simply loved Lee, and right now it was positively devouring his husband.

"Hn – ah!"

The noises were accompanied by a tug of his hair.

Gaara reached up with one of his hands and lightly raked his nails down Lee's stomach.

It earned him another hissing sound.

This didn't actually hurt Lee, Gaara wasn't trying to draw blood or leave permanent marks, but when he applied the right amount of pressure it send tingly jolts all over Lee's body. It was something he was more sensitive to than Lee, but it always felt so good when Lee did it that he was determined to get it right the same way one day so Lee could feel just as good.

He kept this up, moving his tongue like a thrashing dancer over Lee's clitoris, punctuated with sucking on it as best he could, until Lee whined that he wanted Gaara inside him.

Since he was still trying to keep this all about Lee's pleasure, Gaara kept his mouth where it was and dragged his hand down to add his fingers when Lee corrected him.

"Uhn – no – Gaara, your…"

It was almost charming that Lee was too embarrassed to finish his sentence, particularly since he was on his back being eaten out.

Gaara hesitated for a second, pausing his ministrations and resting his hand on Lee's thigh.

' _It's what Lee wants'_ , he told himself again as he sat up so he could pull his own pants off. Although the erection bobbing between his own legs revealed he felt more aroused than guilty.

' _Being a bad parent and being a good husband are two separate issues_ ' he thought as he climbed back over Lee and gripped himself to get into position.

Lee's hands moved to his hips, ready to pull him inside.

Gaara pulled back his foreskin, and set the head of his penis right at the mouth of Lee's wet little hole, and then all thoughts slipped out of his brain as he pushed inside.

Oh, _god_ that felt good.

That felt so stupidly – _maddeningly_ good.

He didn't have to wait for Lee to adjust, he was already incredibly aroused and wet enough to make the insertion effortless, so Gaara gently rocked his hips a few times to get his bearings, then pulled Lee's right knee up so Lee would wrap his ankle over Gaara's waist – and then thrust _hard_.

This was a mistake.

Two things happened at once: Lee cried out in a way Gaara immediately recognized as discomfited, and something shoved Gaara's chest so harshly that he was knocked off and out of his lover.

He knew Lee hadn't pushed him, but they both blinked at each other for a moment looking bewildered before Gaara realized what had happened.

 _The sand_.

And if it was the sand – that meant –

"Lee, did I hurt the baby?!"

The sound Lee had made already told him that he'd done something to bother Lee, but usually when Gaara thrust at the wrong angle it was only a minor flash of discomfort and then Lee would quickly correct him and they would go right back to happily fucking.

But now – if Gaara moved the wrong way –

"No, no Gaara I'm sure the baby is fine! You just smacked my cervix – why did your sand do that?" Lee asked, keeping his eyes on the sand that was still hovering over his belly.

He didn't have an answer.

"The sand is protecting the baby," Gaara said, frowning at it.

Lee shook his head. "The baby is fine. Here," he said as he sat up. "I'll get on top!"

Gaara lied back so they could switch positions, still frowning at the sand since it wasn't moving from Lee.

He wasn't entirely convinced that he hadn't somehow hurt the baby…

The sand was also unconvinced.

Lee was straddling him, in the perfect position to sink down and pick up where they had left off, and the sand wouldn't move.

"Gaara," Lee pleaded.

He shook his head. "I'm not controlling it, Lee, it's my mother's sand…"

Lee's face contorted uncomfortably. He wasn't sure how to respond to that… but he was still very much aroused and needed this desert chastity belt to go away.

"Does it think I'm going to hurt you? Or your…" Lee asked, looking down to the part of Gaara the sand was closest to.

"No, it thinks intercourse is going to hurt the baby."

Lee looked like he was ready to argue.

"I'm not controlling it, Lee," Gaara repeated, reminding him.

His husband frowned and then pouted, looking down at their star-crossed genitals helplessly.

"Sit on my face," Gaara offered. He didn't want to leave Lee unsatisfied but the longer the sand lingered the more convinced Gaara was that they had better avoid penetration altogether.

Lee didn't argue, and moved to accommodate the command.

But the sand didn't move.

' _I'm not going to put anything inside him,'_ Gaara thought, as though he were imploring it to allow him to satisfy his husband, but the sand didn't move until he thought it once more and believed it.

He wouldn't put anything inside Lee until a doctor told him it was safe.

This particular vow ended up annoying his lover, since they were not able to see the Suna doctor they trusted for several days, but if Gaara hadn't been feeling like a terrible parent beforehand, thinking he hurt his unborn child with his _erection_ certainly did the trick.

The nightmares became more frequent after that.

oooooo

As the pregnancy went on, Gaara expected Lee to grow enormous.

Something that had long vexed Lee was his struggle to develop bulky muscle tone. It seemed that no matter how hard he trained or how much protein he consumed, his arms and legs were condemned to remain long and lean. Lee was strong, extremely strong, but he ached for a physique that more closely resembled his sensei's.

Whether this was a desire to look more like his adoptive father or a general aesthetic appreciation, Gaara wasn't sure, but either way Lee had been left disappointed.

It seemed that this same principal of bulk-resistance was also applicable when it came to the pregnancy.

Even now, in the last month, Lee's limbs remained toned and lean while only his belly and breasts grew and his cheeks had softened.

It was unique – which was not an unfamiliar descriptor to Lee, so it cushioned the shock of the changes.

The stasis his body tried to keep was due, in large part, to Lee's absolute refusal to quit training during this time. While Lee had eventually conceded to Gaara's (and every medical professional he spoke to) insistence that sparring be completely removed from the list of acceptable activities for a pregnant person, squats were never taken off the table.

On a particularly hot day in the middle of August, Lee was in the middle of his beloved work out when he paused, put a hand on his belly, and let out a small, "hm."

Gaara, who had made a habit of working from home as the due date for the baby moved from weeks to days away, looked up from the report he was detailing and frowned.

Lee was frowning, which wasn't unusual for him since he had a resting face that resembled an angry turtle's, but the hand on his stomach gave Gaara pause.

"Are you alright?" he called over.

Lee's hand slowly rubbed up and down on the green fabric covering his bump (he'd adamantly refused to give up his precious exercise tights, and his loving father had been tasked with finding – read: making – ones acceptable for maternity wear).

"I think so…" Lee started, looking up and quickly raising his hands in defense when Gaara jerked up out of his chair. "No, no, Gaara I am fine!" he corrected quickly. "I just mean…" he murmured, returning one of his hands to it's rubbing and frowning again.

A vein in Gaara's forehead nearly burst waiting for Lee to finish that sentence. He abandoned the report and moved over to Lee so he could put his hands on top of the one already caressing the bump.

"Is the baby alright?" Gaara asked, rubbing his hands around as though his child was going to tap out Morse-code to him should the need arise.

Lee nodded slowly and then pursed his lips. "I think it's trying to come out…"

Gaara's head snapped up. "What-"

With his hands still on Lee's stomach, Gaara was able to feel what made his husband go, "Ah!" before he actually heard Lee do it.

"W-what was that-" Gaara stammered, as all the blood in his body evaporated and the lovely chill of panic took its place.

"I think they're contractions!"

Gaara looked around at where they were and felt his heart drop inexplicably further.

 _Oh,_ _ **no**_.

"Lee!" they heard Gai call out, followed by the sound of the front door slamming shut. "I brought you a delicious lunch!"

Selfishly, Gaara would have preferred for Gai not to be here right now – since his very presence was enough to excite Lee into forgetting to focus on _labor_ – but it also made Gaara realize three things at once:

One: they were not at the hospital. Two: Tsunade had not yet arrived in Suna. Three: Gai was the only one who had prepared for this exact moment.

Ever the loving father and expectant grandfather, Gai had gone to Tsunade the moment he learned about the tiny tiger growing in his precious student and asked her to teach him how to deliver a baby.

At the time, Gaara had made his feelings on the matter of Gai delivering their baby explicitly clear ( _"Absolutely not, Lee,")_ , but both of the bushy-browed fools had assured him it was just a precautionary measure in case it became necessary.

Gaara couldn't forbid Gai from taking lessons from Tsunade, but he did keep a skeptical eye on him and repeatedly make Lee promise they would go to the hospital and not put the fate of their child's first breaths of air into the hands of a man who thought using his pregnant student as a barbell was 'mutually beneficial!'

His mind scrambled for an alternative – could they still get Lee to a hospital?

 _They weren't ready!_

Even though he'd known this day was coming, and soon, and the house looked like two expectant parents had done their research and made things as safe for a newborn as they knew how – there was still one clawing issue Gaara had yet to take care of.

 _What if he didn't love the baby enough?_

"Gai-sensei!" Lee yelled back, interrupting the scrambled egg mess that was Gaara's mass of thoughts.

 _Oh no, oh no –_

If Gai came into this room, and helped deliver this baby, there was no coming back from that – then the baby would _be here_ –

"Lee!" Gai exclaimed cheerfully as he opened the door to Gaara's office, blissfully ignorant of the task about to be set upon him. "How are you feeling today my –"

One look at Lee and Gaara's faces and Gai's fell.

"Lee, are you hurt?!" he shrieked, wheeling over so fast Gaara half expected to see a black streak left on the carpet behind him.

Gaara didn't remove his hands, but he did shift them over a bit when Gai's came to join theirs on the belly.

"Gai-sensei, I think I'm in labor," Lee panted back, immediately scrunching his face and gritting his teeth when what Gaara assumed was another contraction seized him.

Gai was either the only one with the right attitude, or he was a fool – but he broke out the widest and most joyful of grins and immediately threw his arms around Lee's middle, rudely dislodging Gaara's hands.

"Lee! My boy!" he yelled delightedly.

Normally, Gaara was sure Lee would have laughed and hugged his sensei back, but from his face it looked like he was still experiencing a rather awful fit of spasm.

This was exactly what Gaara was afraid of – Gai was too excitable to be trusted with this! He was going to hurt Lee –

"Right!" Gai exclaimed, releasing his hold Lee and sitting back to look his student in the eyes. "Lee, when did your water break?"

Lee frowned, although whether it was out of uncertainty or pain Gaara wasn't able to tell. "Um… I didn't see any water, Gai-sensei – but I did have a bath earlier and thought I felt something strange in there."

If Gaara had been standing next to a wall he would have smacked his head against it.

But Gai took this information in with a stern nod and rubbed Lee's forearms in what Gaara thought was meant to be a grounding, calming gesture.

"I see, and how far apart are your contractions?" he asked, still looking at Lee just as intently.

Lee bit his bottom lip and looked at Gaara, who could only make a vaguely horrified face back.

"That's alright, Lee, don't fret!" Gai said enthusiastically, correctly reading their ignorance and responding cheerfully either out of his own, or an attempt to keep the mood bright.

Gaara felt like his stomach was shitting itself.

"Let's get you out of these tights – although I do like the idea of the baby's first outfit being-"

Lee interrupted him with a high-pitch "hnng!" of pain.

Gai's smile only faltered for a second before he turned it into a laugh. "Lee, how long ago was your bath?"

He seemed too distracted to answer and could only manage an "Um-" and another grimace.

Insert the panicked husband.

"About six hours," Gaara replied, gripping one of Lee's shaky hands so he had something to squeeze. He knew this because Lee forgot to grab a towel because Lee _always_ forgot to grab a towel but Gaara never said anything about it because that meant he got to bring one to a wet, naked Lee –

"And have you been experiencing contractions since then?" Gai asked.

Yes, probably best that he interrupted that particular train of thought. It would appear that not even the imminent birth of his child and his panic over impending parenthood was not a powerful enough distraction from the image of his husband bathing.

That was probably good for the future of their sex life – but it also swung another blow to Gaara's worry over his abilities as a parent. If he couldn't even focus _now_ –

"Yes, I think…" Lee answered through gritted teeth.

Gaara and Gai waited for a moment and then looked at each other as though the other knew what the end to that sentence was.

"I thought it was gas," Lee explained.

 _Oh my_ god.

Where was that wall when Gaara needed it?

Gai laughed – much too loudly – and shook his head. "Lee! You're too tough for your own good! Now," he said, turning to his son-in-law. "Gaara, Lee will need something else to wear besides these tights. A large sleep shirt would be best, could you grab one?"

Yes, yes he could do that.

Gaara gave Lee's hand a squeeze of his own and swore he would be right back.

Lee just nodded and reached for his sensei's hand in the absence of Gaara's.

It was astounding that he was still _standing_ – shouldn't Gai move him to lie down somewhere?

But he didn't stop to ask. He'd been given a task. Lee needed a sleep shirt.

It was actually fortunate that Gai was staying with them, because Gaara and Lee really didn't own anything like what Gai had described. The few sleep shirts they owned were not maternity sized, and when Lee wasn't in his tights he was usually naked, and when Lee was naked Gaara also liked to be naked.

So Gaara went to where they hung their laundry up to dry and pulled down one of the large, soft, green shirts that Gai sometimes slept in.

He returned to his office with the shirt and felt the immediate urge to smack his head again when he saw that Lee had already disrobed.

"Thank you, Gaara! Now, if you could please grab some clean towels that would be very helpful," Gai said as took the shirt out from Gaara's hands and immediately helped Lee into it.

Yes, yes he could do that too… really _shouldn't Lee be lying down-_

He left the room again without comment, since Gai was technically the only one who had any proper medical guidance when it came to the situation at hand, and hurried back to the laundry room.

 _Towels, towels – you're going to be a terrible parent – towels, nice clean towels for Lee-_

"Gaara!" Gai yelled from the other room with an urgency that nearly brought tears to Gaara's eyes.

He nearly dropped what he'd been told to fetch when he spun around to hurry back.

Lee had his hands on his knees and was hunched over – but still standing!

"Gaara, stand behind him, help him stay up," Gai instructed as he tore the towels out of Gaara's shaky hands and wheeled himself forward a bit, putting his lap in a better position underneath Lee's.

"Shouldn't we lie him down?" Gaara asked in a voice that sounded most unlike his own.

Lee answered for his sensei and shook his head. "No – no we talked about birth pos-ish!-tions," he panted back as another contraction seized him. "Squatting is better –"

Gaara felt a sudden rush of guilt for all the times he had grimaced while he watched his husband exercise. If Lee had told him it was for the _baby_ and not because his dad had brainwashed him into an obsessive devotion to exercise-

Right when Lee's knees finally buckled, Gaara's arms flew up underneath his husband's armpits to keep him righted.

This was all happening so fast – not ten minutes ago he'd been working on a report over new methods of water collection and storage and now he was holding Lee up while their child came into the world.

Really, since this baby was just as much Lee's as his, Gaara felt he should have expected it to make a sudden and impulsive entrance into the world.

Just as his brain started to grumble over the thought 'with no time to prepare', another voice reminded him that they had nine long months of pregnancy as a heads up.

And now – it was time.

Gaara needed to make peace with whatever demons were still lingering or dismiss them entirely, because right now wasn't about him. He didn't get to be selfish and worry about the what-ifs.

Lee needed him.

Lee, who was _pushing a human out of his body_ , needed to be able to lean back against his husband and trust that Gaara was _there_ and had him.

Gaara cursed himself for not doing push-ups while Lee did his squats in preparation for this moment.

"Alright, Lee – ready? Push!" Gai yelled in much the same way that he would have instructed them to run towards a setting sun.

"Yes, Gai-sensei!" Lee choked back.

 _Dear god_.

Gaara very nearly let his head drop forward onto Lee's before he caught himself and braced for Lee to strain.

This was a purely physical activity, at least Gaara thought so, but with his own chest now pressed to Lee's back it almost felt like something…electrical was buzzing.

No… that didn't make sense… and what was that sound? Was Lee hissing?

Was this the baby's…chakra? Was Lee giving birth to chidori?

"Gaara – I appreciate you trying to help, but right now your sand is blocking my view," Gai said.

 _What sand? Wait – what view?!_

Lee let out the breath he'd been holding while he pushed and relaxed his weight against Gaara.

Had he commanded the sand to preserve Lee's modesty in front of his sensei? That seemed foolishly self-centered at a time like this, even though he'd definitely had nightmares on the matter since Gai came back from his first lesson with Tsunade.

"Gaara- it's okay," Lee panted.

Just as Gaara opened his mouth to say that he knew it was okay and he was sorry for accidentally interrupting their 'doctor's' process, Lee continued.

"The baby will be safe – Gai-sensei knows how to catch it."

… what did that have to do with –

Oh.

 _Oh!_

A million light bulbs turned on all at once in his head.

The sand wasn't attempting to hide Lee's body from eyes other than Gaara's; it was trying to catch the baby.

This was not the sort of thing his ultimate defense usually did for him – it kept him safe when there was a threat, or when he was in danger.

This wasn't his mother's will flowing through the sand – it was _his_.

How had this not occurred to him before?

Despite the horrid doubts that had plagued him over the course of the pregnancy – the sand – this element speaking from the most primal and raw place of Gaara's heart and brain – knew exactly who his child was and how Gaara felt about them. And just as he was there for Lee now, it was there for him.

Now that he was aware it was operating under his control, or at least that he _did_ have control over it since he had not actually commanded it to be there, Gaara – without removing his arms from where they were keeping Lee up – waved one of his fingers and heard the hissing once more.

It would probably come back later and he'd have to make a conscious effort to keep it out of Gai's way – but the euphoria that flooded him over feeling confident in his love for his child for the first time since he'd learned he was going to be a father made the need seem so far away.

He kissed the back of Lee's neck and whispered, "I know."

Gai looked up at him and beamed.

The nice moment didn't last long before Gai was telling Lee to push again and Lee nearly screamed back, "Yes, Gai-sensei!"

"You're doing great, Lee! I can see the head!" Gai cheered, keeping his eyes focused.

Gaara clenched his stomach and tried to hold them both as upright as possible as Lee's started to curl forward.

"Keep going, Lee – keep pushing – it's almost here!"

The room was a mix of Gai's cheerleading, one long scream from Lee, and a panicked yell from Gaara when he heard the sound his baby made when it finally came out.

"Lee! Lee! He's here!"

Lee slumped back into Gaara's waiting hold and let out a heavy sigh of relief.

Much like the sand, Gaara didn't remember the neurons in his brain firing off and ordering his lips to press kiss after kiss to Lee's head as his hold attempted to move into more of an embrace, but that's what he did.

Gai had caught the baby, as promised, and from behind Lee's shoulder Gaara gazed at his son.

He felt drunk – or at least, what he thought intoxication must feel like, since he'd never actually experienced it. The sight in front of him was real, but he felt like it couldn't be – it was too good. Even the wailing in his ears that gave Lee's scream such a run for its money it was almost unbelievable it was coming out of something with no practice – the sound was real, and yet Gaara couldn't grab onto the reality of it.

He had a _son_. He had a _child_. A baby – _his_ baby – him and Lee – they made that – that thing right there that Gai was holding – _they did that_ –

"Lee," he breathed through a teary smile.

"You did a great job, Lee!" Gai exclaimed through his own tears.

"Thank you, Gai-sensei…" Lee panted back.

Gaara echoed the praise and punctuated the sentiment with another kiss to the tip of Lee's ear.

Gai had the baby cradled in one arm and pulled out scissors from what looked like thin air.

"Gaara, traditionally I would ask you to cut the cord, but you have something very precious in your arms," Gai said, but he didn't take his eyes off the baby so he missed Gaara's dismissive headshake.

"It's fine," he said, perfectly content to hold Lee. With the tremendous, overwhelming surge of love for Lee flowing through him right now – he didn't ever want to let his husband go. He would learn to live the rest of his life with Lee under one arm and the baby in the other.

Kages had done crazier things. He could make this work.

Vaguely, Gaara was aware of Gai cutting the cord and then handing him towels to help cushion Lee's lower half so he could lie down, but Gaara remained behind him, holding him up and close.

Before they cleaned and weighed the baby, they wanted to give him his first feeding. Gaara helped pull Lee's shirt up as Lee reached out and took their child out of Gai's hands.

Both parents broke.

"Hi, little boy," Lee sobbed as he cradled their little tiger – who roared back to his dad.

Gaara reached one arm around Lee's so he could caress his son's head and let out a tiny gasp when he felt the skin.

His child was covered in something that would probably be unpleasant to think about later, but as soon as they touched – he was _real_.

"Yeah," Lee sniffed back through a smile.

Had Gaara said that out loud?

"Are you hungry?" Lee cooed tearfully as he shifted to try and get the baby's face closer to his breast.

The tiger continued to roar.

"Oh, I know," Lee murmured back sympathetically as his free hand tried to help his blind baby out and maneuver his nipple to the screaming mouth.

This was officially the first thing that Gaara had in common with his child: Lee's nipples rendered them both speechless.

Gaara's sister warned him that not all babies took to breastfeeding immediately, and that they shouldn't lose hope if it took their child a while to figure it out.

The tiny tiger experienced no such difficulty.

His perfect little lips closed down to get his first meal ever, and Lee lightly rubbed his cheek and _sobbed_.

Gaara could only stare as his own tears silently glided down.

It was mesmerizing.

He was here – he was here and in Lee's arms and eating! That was a thing people did! His baby was a person!

The feeding didn't last long, the tiger's stomach was too small to feast, but the few minutes of watching Lee breastfeed was enchanting.

Gai took the stuffed little infant from Lee's arms so he could finish with the doctor duties, and Gaara took the opportunity to place his hands on Lee's cheeks and kiss him good.

This lovely man – this lovely, foolish, _perfect_ man just gave him a baby.

A baby so perfect he couldn't believe he'd ever doubted just how much he would love it.

"I love you," he promised against Lee's lips.

"Mmm… I love you too," Lee breathed back. He dropped his head on Gaara's shoulder and let out a contented sigh while they watched Gai tend to their child.

Once he was clean and swaddled in a soft towel, Gai pressed a kiss to his grandson's cheek and handed him back to Lee.

Gaara wasn't in a good position to hold him, since he was still supporting Lee, and Gai – who was really on top of his game today – took note of this.

He maneuvered himself out of his chair and took Gaara's place so the husbands could sit next to each other.

The first time he held Shikadai, Gaara's arms felt a little bit like noodles. It was as though he'd forgotten how to control them, and he wasn't sure what to do with his hands.

Now, when he reached over to take his child from Lee – to hold him for the first time – the fluidity of his movements reminded him of when he'd used his sand to make Naruto shake his hand.

This was why people were born with arms: to hold up their husbands while they gave birth, and to cradle the baby afterwards.

When he finally had the little one properly secure, Gaara looked down and immediately died.

This – was – the _cutest_ – no that word wasn't strong enough.

There was no word – a new one needed to be invented to describe how perfect and adorable and incredible this baby was and oh no Gaara had stopped breathing and he was crying onto his son's face.

The baby was also crying, and Gai and Lee hadn't stopped – they were all in good, weepy company, but they were all so full of delirious joy.

Well, the adults were, the baby was full of milk and some unpleasantness he would get on his dads later.

Gaara gazed at his son, lightly running his finger all over his tiny face and down his little arm to his itty bitty fingers – of which there were ten, Gaara kept counting them with soft kisses. Gai rubbed Lee's shoulders and continued to tell Lee how proud he was of his most precious student while they waited to deal with the afterbirth.

The kanji on Gaara's forehead had never seemed so appropriate. He'd never felt so filled – so overwhelmingly stuffed – with this emotion.

He was so distracted by the tiny, lovely thing in his arms that he didn't notice the sand behind his head.

It was the first and only time it had ever appeared when it wasn't trying to protect. Karura found a way to be there for the birth of her grandson, silently watching, vowing to protect him the same way she'd always protected Gaara.

Perhaps the baby felt this promise as it etched itself into his bones, and that was what prompted him to open his tiny eyes for the first time.

He was too little, too new to process these three crying, smiling faces who started making noise as soon as he blinked against the new harsh light of this world outside the dark, warm womb he knew. No, the baby wouldn't remember this moment, but once his onyx eyes were looking at the sand over his dad's shoulder, and Karura's oath was set, the sand slipped quietly back into the gourd. The sound was masked by the coos of new parents and a very enthusiastic grandpa.

oooooo

A few days later, after the rest of the families had arrived in Suna and squealed over the adorable baby, the boys found themselves with a rare moment of privacy.

Kakashi and Gai were out grabbing food and more cloth diapers (they really hadn't prepared for how much damage this baby was prepared to cause), and Temari and Kankuro were handling some Kage-related affairs on their brother's behalf. Tenten and Naruto were distracted from their task with arguing over who would be the better honorary guardian.

It left Gaara and Lee to relax blissfully alone with their baby.

They were resting in bed in much the same positions as they'd been in immediately after the tiger was born. Lee was leaning back against Gaara's chest, and his arms were protectively cocooning their sleeping infant.

It was peaceful and possibly the quietest Lee had ever been while they were both awake in bed.

It didn't last long.

"What do you think of Metal?" Lee asked, stroking the baby's cheek gently.

Gaara shifted. "What?"

"Metal," Lee repeated. "For his name."

Metal…

Gaara had to close his eyes and resist the urge to sigh.

That was… _such_ a Lee name. Although it was better than what Gaara had worried himself over Lee might choose after he'd suggested 'youth' a few weeks ago ('It's cute, Gaara!).

"Metal," Gaara murmured, trying it out.

 _Metal…_

He looked down at the baby and smiled.

It didn't matter what he said, that was their baby's name.

"Hi, Metal," Gaara said quietly, consenting to his husband's wish. He moved his arm around and put his hand on top of Lee's so they could both rub the soft, plump little cheek.

Lee started crying.

If he hadn't been quick to tears before the baby then birth had really done him no favors.

Gaara didn't ask what was wrong or try to console him, he knew they were happy tears. He kissed Lee's head and continued to love on his child.

"Metal," Lee wept. "We made you."

"Mmhmm," Gaara agreed.

They had indeed. They made him, and oh how they loved him. So much more than Gaara had ever even worried about not living up to.

Naruto had nailed it – it was _scary_.

Gaara wanted to give Metal everything he had, everything he was – even the air in his lungs and the blood in his veins: it all belonged to his baby.

 _I love someone that much_.

Lee shifted so he could kiss Gaara's jaw and then wiped his tears on his husband's neck.

 _I love_ two _someones that much._

The little worries had no place here, in their bed. Whether it was Lee's warmth or the baby's cuteness – there was simply too much good here to even leave room for the negativity and the worries.

They would probably get him later, and he'd have to wrestle with them again, but for now, with Lee, he was just going to enjoy that they had made Metal.

oooooo


End file.
